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Kings two-year plan is sensible legislation

State Rep. Steve King wants to make vehicle registration more convenient for Colorado motorists and save the state some money in the process.

That’s an idea we can support.

King’s plan, through House Bill 1268, is to allow people to register their vehicles for two years at a time, instead of mandating they renew the registration every year, as is now the case.

The change in the law would not only ease the registration burden, it will provide the state with almost $12 million in additional revenue the first year, and save hundreds of thousands of dollars the subsequent year, according to the Legislature’s fiscal analysis of the bill. It will also provide a small amount of additional revenue for school districts and local governments.

Additionally, those who choose the option of two-year vehicle registration can avoid the much-despised late fees for vehicle registration that were adopted by Democrats controlling the Legislature last year.

Under the bill, motorists who choose the two-year option would have to pay two years’ worth of registration fees and specific ownership taxes at one time, a cost that might dissuade some people from choosing that option. But for those who can afford the extra year’s payment and want to avoid having to register every year, it would be a sensible, cost-effective system.